


gray morality and white lies

by tangentiallly



Category: A Series of Unfortunate Events - Lemony Snicket
Genre: Arguing, Gen, Pre-Canon, but post-b&b leaving vfd
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-02
Updated: 2020-03-02
Packaged: 2021-02-28 03:41:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,829
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22987273
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tangentiallly/pseuds/tangentiallly
Summary: Kit tried to convince Bertrand to tell his children about VFD.
Relationships: Kit Snicket & Bertrand Baudelaire
Comments: 2
Kudos: 13





	gray morality and white lies

**Author's Note:**

> disclaimer: I don't own ASOUE

“They’re old enough now,” Kit said, her frown deepening. “Not Sunny, I know, but Violet and Klaus are. You need to tell them about the organization. You know you cannot shelter them away from that knowledge forever.”

“We left VFD, Kit,” Bertrand reminded her.

She gave him a meaningful look, and then let her glance slowly yet deliberately slide onto the report on the dining table, a report she brought today that she’d received from Beatrice not long ago, something Beatrice had sent through some secret communications channel during their recent visit to the Victorious Finance District. 

His expression darkened, knowing full well the message she was sending even if she didn’t say a single word. The unspoken reminder that even when they had been having fun with their children at the fountain at Victorious Finance District that day, they had also been - always, continuously, peripherally - involved within VFD business.

A reminder that they had never really been completely out.

“Not entirely,” Kit said, as if any clarification was needed after her long glance, as if he might need any elaborating of the message.

He didn’t.

“Perhaps not,” Bertrand conceded. “Perhaps we never completely did -” no use to pretend otherwise now, especially not with Kit - “but we can try our best to make sure they never will.”

“And if you can’t be sure that will be enough to keep them away - wouldn’t you rather they have enough knowledge about it and know what to do when that day comes?”

“We _ did _ train them,” Bertrand pointed out stiffly.

“Yes, on various skills, and while those are certainly useful, but that’s still not comparable to the amount of even more crucial knowledge they will gain if you tell them about the organization, and perhaps even -”

“Don’t,” Bertrand interrupted, his gaze warning.

She stopped, studying him, and shrugged slowly. “Fine, I won’t say it, but you know it anyway.”

He pursed his lips in displeasure, and she suspected he knew she’s right.

Kit remembered that night all those years ago, when Violet had still been very young, and Beatrice had called her in the middle of the night, and Kit had arrived within minutes with the taxi. She remembered Beatrice’s worried ramblings about if what she and Bertrand were doing was exactly the same as Ishmael. She remembered Beatrice wondering if the way they shelter their kids from the knowledge and dangers of VFD was like the way Ishmael kept all the important information away from the people on that faraway island. She remembered vividly how scared and worried Beatrice had looked, even though Beatrice had rarely ever looked like that and always known how to put on her bravest and most charming face.

Kit also remembered reassuring Beatrice that they were not like Ishmael, who was trying to control the people and rule the island, who was acting like that for selfish purposes.

She was looking at Bertrand now, who was stubbornly insisting to keep the children away despite his and Beatrice’s tangentially tangled involvements never completely ceased. Bertrand, who was still not budging an inch even after Kit told him about the potential rising dangers and how it would probably be best to introduce the children into the organization now, so they could all be more prepared for what could happen when their past eventually catches up with them.

She hated the argument she was about to use, especially considering Beatrice’s fears from all those years ago and possibly still present in her heart. But the fear was what also made her feel this might be an effective argument, and sometimes you had to sacrifice other things for effectiveness.

She probably would not have been able to say what she was about to say right to Beatrice’s face, not when she still clearly remembered Beatrice’s worrying expression from all those years ago, but Bertrand - it’s a little different if it’s him.

“So you’re just going to act like Ishmael, keeping them sheltered away from what they need to know?” She asked, a little mean.

When he flinched as if he’d just been slapped, she wondered if this was perhaps too far a step to take.

His expression hardened and his tone was frosty when he next spoke, icily suggesting, “Perhaps you should leave now.”

She met his eyes and didn’t move. They looked at each other for a moment, before his expression changed in an odd way, a calculative sneer surfacing, and something shifted in between them.

“So you tell Dewey everything you collect? Give him every piece of information? Or do they have to go through the Kit Snicket Censoring System first?”

She froze for a moment, and then said, very very slowly. “Say. That. Again. I dare you.”

His lips twitched, but before he could say anything, the front door swung open and Beatrice emerged through it.

“Well, I need to go,” Kit announced abruptly. “I’ll see myself out.”

Beatrice blinked, and Bertrand added, reflexively, “she has something scheduled soon and couldn’t stay long.” He said, as if they’d been in their teenage years again trying to keep their private arguments private because neither of them liked getting other people involved in those.

“Okay,” Beatrice said, sounding a little disappointed, but she kissed Kit on the cheeks and told her to stay safe out there, before heading towards the kitchen to stock the fridge with stuff she just bought. Kit smiled at Beatrice, although her smile vanished the instant Beatrice turned away, and she began to leave without another glance at Bertrand.

He was about to just watch her leave and not do anything before realizing that they weren’t teenagers anymore, nor in their early 20s. They weren’t still as close as they’d been a decade ago, when no fights of theirs would last too long and they would eventually reconcile and ended up driving across the hinterlands at midnight or something. 

They didn’t see each other every day now, not even every month. She was leaving and whatever their other disagreements were, he knew she was right about the dangers and he knew it wasn’t the safest out there at this moment, and things could very possibly get worse.

He didn’t know when he would see her again if he just let her leave like this, let their conversation end in an unresolved fight. Despite his anger at her comparison of him and Beatrice to Ishmael, despite him thinking she was always prone to keeping information away from others perhaps just as much as he was, despite all his frustration - he wasn’t ready to let her leave like this and let this be how their last interaction went, if they never got to see each other again.

“I’ll be back soon,” he shouted in the direction of the kitchen and dashed out of the door. If she didn’t reach the taxi yet there was probably still a chance to catch her, if she’d already left then the chances were much slimmer.

Even when running, his body was reminding him he was no longer as young as he’d once been, too. By the time he reached her, he was almost out of his breath.

Kit paused and looked at him coolly. He was trying to catch his breath - once upon a time that would’ve just been a tactic to delay talking and trying to come up with something to say, but now he actually had to catch his breath. He was getting old and he didn’t want to dwell on that right now. He had more pressing matters.

They looked at each other wordlessly, and then Kit sighed. “You want to get in the taxi?”

“Sure,” he said automatically, as if this had been two decades ago.

They climbed into the taxi, but instead of driving away, she just kind of sat there in the driver’s seat.

Kit spoke first. “I tell Dewey things - maybe not  _ everything _ but that’s just because there is too much information out there and he doesn’t need to know everything, it’ll only distract from the most important work. We all have to do our jobs, and his is to document the necessary things, and not everything needs to be documented, and telling him some things he couldn’t help solve would just worry him.”

“And your job is to decide what information he receives and categorizes?” Bertrand asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Part of it,” Kit said coolly. “You’re in no place to comment on how I do my job.” The ‘since you left’ wasn’t said out loud, but Bertrand thought he heard it anyway.

“Fine,” he said tersely. There was a moment of tense silence, and he reminded himself firmly that he didn’t run all the way out here just to be stubborn and not make any efforts in trying to resolve their argument. He could’ve just stayed in the house if he just wanted to be stubborn. “I apologize,” he said, rather formally. It wasn’t the most sincere, but perhaps it was _ something _ , at least.

She looked at him for a bit and he looked back at her, before she said, “I should not have said that about you guys and Ishmael.”

“I do think it’s rather unfair of you to do that,” he said, slowly. 

She shrugged a little, just about as apologetic as he was when he apologized seconds ago. “I don’t think I’m all that wrong though - while there are differences and not exactly the same, there are also .. undeniably a certain similarity.” Her expression darkened. “Don’t tell Beatrice that, though.”

He closed his eyes for a moment, looking tired. And then he opened his eyes again and looked at her, “Funny how we’re both well versed in keeping secrets and accusing each other of that -”

“How hypocritical of us,” Kit muttered. “Not that that’s news, I suspect.”

“- and yet here we are, not even bothering to filter these accusations and ugliness when we talk to each other.”

Kit sighed. “You do bring out that side in me.”

He gave her a wry look. “Likewise, Kit.”

“Look, you don’t have to make any decisions - but just - keep this in mind, okay? Think about it. Just - give it some thoughts. Can’t hurt anything.”

He was quiet for a moment before relenting. “Fine, I’ll think about it. No promises on any actual decision though.”

“Right,” she said. “I understand.”

He hesitated, and thought he should add something. He knew she was actually worried about safety, even if might’ve not been her only motive. “Thanks for - thanks for letting me know, really.”

She softened. “Yeah, well - I want you to have the information needed.” She reached out her hand and placed it on his. “Take care and stay safe, will you?”

“Always,” he said quietly. “You be careful out there too.”

She flashed him a quick smile. “Of course.”

There was another moment of silence before he said, “Well - I should get back to Beatrice.”

“Right, of course,” Kit said. “See you, B.”

**Author's Note:**

> [come say hi on tumblr](https://beatricebidelaire.tumblr.com/)


End file.
